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Thursday, December 06, 2007

Every Country's Right to Self-Defence

The Guardian reports that 'the EU special envoy on Kosovo' today 'demanded' a retraction of a threat by a senior Serbian official that his country could resort to war if the province declares independence.

Let's hope Serbia tells 'the EU special envoy' to mind his own business.
As the Serb official in question, Alexsander Simic said:

"When someone fails to respect the Security Council, the only body that ought to react in times when there is a threat of aggression and war, particularly when someone does not observe Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter and the resolution that was adopted in line with it, then there is nothing else a country can do. Every state has the right to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity by all means necessary,”


(you can read more of Simic's speech here)

Serbia is faced with the illegal seizure of part of its historic territory, in blatant contravention of international law. Forget the imperialistic claptrap of the 'EU special envoy', Serbia has the right to self-defence, and use military means if necessary to prevent loss of its territory, as any country does. Let's hope that it doesn't come to that, but if war does break out, it will not be the responsibility of Serbia, but of the western countries who have, for their own selfish reasons, fomented separatism and discord in the region.

The ball is now very firmly in the court of the US and the EU. They can end their support for Kosovan separatism here and now, or they can plunge the region into a new war.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Kosovo is 92% Albanian and 90% Sunni Muslim. Do you not think they have the right to self-determination is a majority of the people vote for it in a fair election? If, for example, the Scots vote for independence, would you similarly reject their right to self-determination?

Nick said...

There is, I believe, a movement for Cornish independence from England. Are the US and EU going to support that too? Or might the British government have a different view about that one?

Neil Clark said...

The Scotland analogy is silly Luke; the Scots are not the majority there because of massive enthic cleansing of other groups. Serbs were the majority group in Kosovo up until WW2, when ethnic Albanians, with support from the Italian fascists expelled Serbs, who never got the right of return under Tito. Then there were the events of the late 1990s, when by use of the prxy KLA the US attempted to prise Kosovo away from the rest of Yuguoslavia.
Kosovo has enormous mineral wealth and is now the site of 'Camp Bondsteel', the US's largest from scratch military base since Vietnam. And since 1999, hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Jews, and Roma and other enthnic groups have been driven from the province. In order to plunder Kosovo's assets, gain a strategic base in the Balkans and destabilise the last remaining socialist government in the region, the US was prepared to side with drug-dealing terrorists and provoke a war. Such a crime should not be rewarded.

btw. if you're so keen on self determination, why aren't you championing the right of Serbs in Bosnia to cede and join Serbia, as the majority wish to do ? Why is that 'verboten' and totally out of the question but Kosovan independence 'inevitable' and a good thing? Oh, I see, self-determination doesn't apply where Serbs are involved.....

Anonymous said...

How do you know my opinion on Bosnian Serbs? Odd.

And I know exactly why the ethnic make-up of Kosovo is why it is, I just don't believe in setting current ethical-political positions based on events that happened before I was born. Sure, the treatment of Serbia and surrounding states in WW2 and its aftermath was atrocious, but that doesn't create a right TODAY strong enough to overcome the wishes of an area/ethnicity of determine its own future, indpendently. As far as I can tell, it has been well over a decade since Serbia has been able to have any real control over Kosovo anyway.

Neil Clark said...

Hi Luke: so I take it that means you think that Bosnian Serbs should have the right to separate from Bosnia too? And if not, why not?

David Lindsay said...

First Iran and now this: it's not looking good for the neocons. If Kosovo declares independence, then the Serbian army will be straight in there, with the full assurance of unlimited Russian backing.

And that will be the end of the neocon-backed separatist aspirations of pimping, heroin-trafficking Wahhabi wearing black shirts in deference to their SS fathers and grandfathers. Nobody is going to risk World War Three for the likes of them.

Are they?

Anonymous said...

Neil, following your logic, Serbia should surely hand over Karadzic and Mladic to The Hague then, right?

Anonymous said...

Anon-y-mouse said...
"Neil, following your logic, Serbia should surely hand over Karadzic and Mladic to The Hague then, right?"

That assumes that Karadzic and Mladic are in Serbia to start with.

Anonymous said...

Hello Anon-y-mouse,

Why should SERBIA hand over Karadzic and Mladic? Karadzic is Montenegrian and Mladic Bosnian. Shouldn't Montenegro and Bosnia be looking for them?
Not to mention that Serbia was cleared of so called 'genocide'.

So, do remind us all again, why should Serbia search for citizens of other countries?

Should Serbia also go looking for Greeks who helped them fight the Croats and Bosnians while its at it?

Ken said...

I think that we are sleepwalking into another war. The Serbs won't back down, and the only thing that will prevent it is if Russia backs them.

Bozidar said...

Political and religious affiliations aside Serbia is the least guilty in this whole mess. The US ceased the opportunity to grab a strategic advantage while its former cold war adversary went through difficult period. All the hoo-ha about the Serb atrocities was easily concocted and served to the unsuspecting masses through the controlled media.

The real problem is that the tables have been turned by a sooner than expected Russian recovery and the West is finding it hard to swallow its pride and admit its wrong doing. The choice of carrying on regardless may be the silliest move yet.